The last 12 months have been highlighted with incredible progress in our climbing and outdoor staff certifications. Along with certifying our staff, we have also opened our trainings to the public. Check out the Get Certified section of the website to read about opportunities for development.
AMGA Single-Pitch and Advanced Trainings
This November was busier than ever. We brought back American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) instructor and IFMGA Guide, Joey Thompson, to certify some of our newer climbing guides and to teach advanced guiding techniques to our senior staff.
Moving outside of single pitch terrain our guides learned advanced techniques that open the door for higher ratio guiding in single pitch and multi pitch terrain. Now our guides are equipped with tools that enable them to manage more clients in a single day while maintaining a high standard of quality and safety for clients. This opens up new opportunities for clients to go multi-pitch climbing with more people and to get more out of a single day.
The AMGA continues to shape and set the standards of guiding at CMRCA and we hope to assist in developing standards throughout Thailand and Southeast Asia. We are excited to see what the future will bring for our guides. Many of them have started training for the next level of AMGA certifications in the disciplines of guiding in rock and alpine terrain.
Wilderness Medicine
CMRCA Guide, Add Kongsingh, travelled to the U.S. in the spring as part of our annual guide exchange program. This year in addition to the guide exchange, he was able to participate in a Wilderness Medical Associates (WMA) Wilderness Emergency Medical Technician (WEMT) course in Michigan. Add has his WEMT certification and is passionate about continuing his development in the field and increasing accessibility of wilderness medicine education in Thailand. Add has played a critical role in helping us open Wilderness First Aid courses to other providers and outdoor enthusiasts by working with WMA instructors and simultaneously translating the courses into Thai.
In August 2015, the full guide and program facilitation team participated in a WMA Wilderness First Responder (WFR) Course with Simon Dilks. The whole group passed the course and it marks a new standard for senior and assistant program staff at CMRCA. WFR is the industry standard for outdoor guiding globally.
Climbing Wall Association
Josh, Taw, Add, Mario and Alan traveled in May to the U.S. to join the Climbing Wall Association (CWA) Summit in Boulder, Colorado. The group participated in the CWA Climbing Wall Instructor (CWI) Provider Course. CMRCA is now a provider for indoor CWI (top rope and lead) courses and has begun to facilitate courses throughout Thailand, including with our partners at Rock Domain, Urban Playground, and Prem Center.
During the trip, the team made a side journey to world famous Moab to climb some desert towers and cracks on the world famous sandstone. It represented another milestone for us in promoting a healthy lifestyle rooted in adventure. We are looking forward to many more climbing adventures in the coming year.
CMRCA is offering CWI Trainings throughout the year in Chiang Mai and is available for private courses throughout Southeast Asia. Check out the Get Certified section of our website for upcoming course dates.
IFMGA Guide and our AMGA Instructor, Joey Thompson
AMGA SPI Course 2015 – Joey Thompson and Add Kongsingh
AMGA SPI Course 2015 – Ethan Berman, Joey Thompson and M Waters.
CWA Course at Urban Playground (Bangkok) – CMRCA and CWA Instructor, Taw Uppakham.
CWA Course at Urban Playground (Bangkok) – CMRCA and CWA Instructors, Taw Uppakham and Alan Avedovech.
The crew in Moab – Taw Uppakham, Alan Avedovech, Mario Wild, Josh Morris and Add Kongsingh.
Add Kongsingh in Moab, Utah.
